As commercial development expands, investors clamor to rezone the South Bronx

As commercial development continues to expand in the South Bronx, a growing number of investors are pushing for zoning changes to allow more residential development in the Longwood neighborhood there.

“The values of development sites in the Longwood area are still reasonable,” said Albert Gjonbalaj, chief executive of UA Builders, a construction firm in Manhattan acting as general contractor on three Longwood projects. Gjonbalaj was also an investor in Propco LLC, affiliates of which acquired the parcels during the first half of 2016. Propco paid less than $2 million for the three parcels, which ultimately could yield as many as 79 market-rate apartments. The firm does not need zoning changes for the developments, given their small nature, but other projects in Longwood do.

The mixed-use district includes multifamily buildings as well as light industrial warehouses and garages that developers are hoping to turn residential. In late January the Rockland County–based Ader Group asked the city for a zoning change that would let it convert a low-slung garage near the Sheridan Expressway and the elevated 6 train into a 14-story, two-building complex.

All of the 1125 Whitlock Ave. development’s nearly 500 units would be earmarked for below-market rents, according to plans filed with the city. Some of the planned 93 studio apartments would rent for less than $400 per month, and 48 units would be set aside for formerly homeless families. The proposal also includes plans for rooftop solar panels and green spaces.

Ader Group plans to commence construction by the end of the year, but the project still has to go through a land-use review, a process that takes at least seven months and can lead to a project being quashed by a single City Council member.

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